With the mass adoption of smartphones by business travelers, managed travel has entered a new era. Despite this transformation the discipline of travel management in many ways is stuck in decades-old methodologies, measurements and focus. While many U.S. corporate travel managers tout success with online booking tools (OBTs) as adoption rates soars, the managed business traveler has already moved on. The smartphone now is the platform of choice for not only research, but booking as well.

A major gap divides the conceptual principles of managed travel and actual traveler behavior. By definition, managed travel implies control over the traveler’s actions. But the majority of U.S. companies lack strict consequences when policy is violated, allowing more freedom for the traveler to choose suppliers and booking channels. This behavior may be hidden from traditional measurement, as managed business travelers increasingly use their smartphones to plan and book their trips. Convenience and better prices drive policy violations, reinforcing that the traveler is now at the center of any managed travel program.

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